Moodys methods are false: US

The company did its own review of how it rated the risk in 2008 and found that it had erred in the way it rated some debt obligations. The ratings are unrelated to the mortgage backed securities for which the agency is already under fire.

Late Friday,Moody8217;s revealed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission SEC that federal investigators called its procedures for quantifying some debt ratings 8220;false and misleading8230;in light of the company8217;s finding that a rating committee policy had been violated.8221; The SEC plans an administrative review.

The company8217;s own investigation found errors in the way it rated complex European debt products in 2007 called constant-proportion debt obligations.

Moody8217;s says it disagrees with the SEC8217;s findings and has filed a response to the inquiry.

Critics say that Moody8217;s and other ratings agencies failed to adequately review mortgages that were packaged and sold on Wall Street before the economic crises spread globally.

A panel investigating the roots of the financial crisis used its subpoena power for the first time last month to obtain documents from Moody8217;s Corp.

The chairman of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission said Moody8217;s refused to provide the documents voluntarily.

On Monday,company shares plunged 10 percent,or 2.26,to 21.10 in morning trading.